Arriving at Cradle Mountain
It has been proven again that using your brain is better than simply relying on the GPS! With a wrong number in the address, we ended up 20 km from the Cradle Mountain Wilderness Village. But the little detour was quickly forgotten when we saw an echidna alongside the road. It was the second time that we had spotted the cute animal.
We settled into our cabin for the next two nights and while we were walking to the restaurant, we had an unexpected encounter with a pademelon that was enjoying his dinner. This was certainly the best possible end to a beautiful day! So we thought! On our way back, we saw more of these little cuties and on top of that a real adorable wombat.
We slept a little longer than usual as it was raining. We got up at 8am and had a quick breakfast. Then we left for the visitor centre and when we got out of the car, the sun was shining again, completely unexpected since it was supposed to rain the entire day.
Hike in Cradle Mountain
We looked at the different hiking options and settled for a combination of two walks, passing by Ronny Creek, Crater Lake, Wombat Pool and then the Dove Lake Circuit. Cars are not allowed in the park during certain hours so we took the shuttle bus that was included in our holiday pass.
We began our walk at the start of the famous Overland Track (a 6-days’ hike from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair). This was definitely the most beautiful walk of the entire holiday! The views were stunning the entire 4 hours. We had to climb a bit but we kept it dry! The part around Dove Lake was relatively busy, but on the more remote parts we were often alone.
Devils@cradle
In the afternoon we visited Devils@cradle, situated at a short drive from the visitor centre. It is not so easy to spot the Tasmanian devil in the wild so this wildlife sanctuary is the best option for seeing them. The little creatures, together with other marsupials are threatened in the wild. The devil was almost extinct due to a facial tumour disease. The visit was educational as well as pleasant. The breeding programme ensures that the devils are released into the nature.
Those Tasmanian devils look very cute, but we should not forget that they are scavengers with very strong jaws that crunch and eat bones in a way that there is nothing left… We saw some fights between them, the noise they make is incredible while their fur is often covered in blood.
This was certainly one of the top activities that we undertook during our trip and one of the most remarkable days we had during our 3 week’s visit of the island. We were really sad to leave Cradle Mountain.
